1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a joint device for an automotive wiring harness and is particularly designed to increase the number of wires connectable with one bolt.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Wires forming an automotive wiring harness are grounded to a vehicle body by fastening terminals at ends of the wires to a bolt. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, a mount hole 51a of a prior art terminal 51 at an end of a wire 50 is fitted down on a shaft 2a of a bolt projecting from a vehicle body 1, and the terminal 51 is fastened by a nut 52.
The prior art terminal 51 at the end of the wire 50 is a so-called LA terminal which is provided with a substantially circular electrical contact portion 51b formed at the leading end, and a barrel portion 51c at the opposed end. A mount hole 51a is formed centrally through the circular contact portion 51b.
The terminals 51 enable two wires 50 to be connected with the shaft 2a of one bolt to establish a ground by putting flat surfaces of the terminals 51 together as shown in FIGS. 4(B) and 4(C). More particularly, the connection of the terminals 51 with the shaft 2a of the bolt requires the contact surface of the terminal 51 to be flattened to ensure a stable contact. On the other hand, one side of the barrel 51c of the terminal 51 inevitably has a thickness due to the diameter of the wire 50. Thus, a maximum of two wires 50 can be connected with one bolt by putting the flat surfaces of the barrel portions 51 thereof together as described above.
Accordingly, to ground three or more wires, it is necessary to employ a joint connector for accommodating a plurality of wires and combining them into one wire that can be mounted to a single bolt. Alternatively the number of bolts at the vehicle body can be increased so that no more than two wires can be connected with each bolt. A joint connector leads to an increased cost for parts and more bolts necessitates more connecting operations.
In view of the above problem, it is an object of the present invention to provide a joint device for an automotive wiring harness which increases the number of wires connectable with one bolt.